1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computer-aided design of vehicles and, more specifically, to a method of parametric design of an instrument panel support structure for an instrument panel on a vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
Vehicle design, and in particular automotive vehicle design, has advanced to a state in which computer-aided design techniques are frequently incorporated in the development of a new vehicle. Computer-aided design is especially beneficial in packaging the various systems incorporated within a vehicle, to maximize design and functional capabilities of the vehicle systems. One example of a vehicle system is the instrument panel support structure for an instrument panel. The instrument panel support structure is positioned between a side structure of the vehicle and provides structural reinforcement for a vehicle body. The instrument panel support structure also provides an attachment surface for various vehicle components such as an instrument panel, an inflatable restraint system, or a heating, ventilation and air conditioning HVAC system.
One aspect of the packaging task for a vehicle system, such as the instrument panel support structure, is to ensure that it is spatially compatible with a particular environment, while still complying with predetermined functional criteria, including performance and durability requirements. In the past, various methods have been utilized to determine whether a proposed design meets such predetermined criteria. For example, a proposed design may be analyzed in two dimensions, which requires many iterations of a drawing. A three-dimensional model may also be constructed to obtain a better perspective of the design. The three-dimensional model may further be subjected to testing to determine whether it complies with performance and durability criteria. This method is time consuming and expensive.
It is also known that design methods that are knowledge-based are being utilized to design a vehicle system. The knowledge-based design method provides advice to the user of the method based on the environment of the design application used. Advantageously, knowledge-based design techniques maximize the amount of knowledge utilized, while developing a new vehicle system in a minimal period of time. An example of a knowledge-based design technique is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,799,293 to Kaepp, entitled “Method For Optimizing The Design Of A Product Using Knowledge Based Engineering Techniques”, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
It is also known to use a computer-aided design technique to design a vehicle system. An example of a computer aided design technique is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/984,806, entitled “Method and System For Vehicle Design Using Occupant Reach Zones”, the disclosure of which is also hereby incorporated by reference.
While the above design techniques work well, they do not take into account the particular functional and packaging criteria associated with designing an instrument panel support structure. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a method for designing an instrument panel support structure for an instrument panel on a vehicle using a parametric design technique that accommodates functional and packaging criteria.